Feeding machine



w. E. TAYLOR: ET AL FEEDING MACQINE s sheets-sheet, 1

Filed Noves. L19.22

lube/whoa Oct, 18. 192k?l w, E TAYLR ET AL FEEDING MACHINE Filed Novfzs. 1922 5 sheets-sheet 2 oct. 18,1927. 1,545,555 w. TAYLOR ET AL Y Y Y 'FEEDING MACHINE Y Filed Nov.25. -1922 I 5 sheets-shet 5 Patented Oct. 18, 1927.

"UNITED" STA-rss WILLIAM E. TAYLoIcoE BLooMFIELn, knim zIGMUND HOFFMAN, oF EAST oiaiuienj v v Y NEW JERSEY. i

FEEDING MACHINE.

i Application filed November 23, 1922, Serial No. 602,687.

This invention relates to a `feeding ma-` chine and, more particularly, to a machine for feeding unbound bundles or groups of folded boxes or `cartons or similar articles from a. forming or gluing machine to a tying machine in which they are bound into packages suitable for packing.

Cartons andboxes of this type lare commonly produced in a fiat, folded form by a gluing machine from which they are delivered on a conveyor in a flat overlapping position. The boxes arel counted into groups of fiftyor other number suitable orpacking by a counting mechanism which oifsets each fiftieth box as it is delivered'to the con,-` veyor. These groups of boxes are then sepa-r rated at the' oii'set boxes by an operator, taken from the conveyor, formed 'into com,-l pact packs or batches, passed over a trip mechanism oi' a tying machine and heldin position until bound into compact bundles suitable for packing and shipping. These various manual operations' between ythe glu* ing machine and the tying machine require considerable time, even when they are distributed among several operators, and the boxes are therefore tied at 'a much' slowerA rate than that at which theyy can be pro? duced by the gluing machine. As' a result,

' lation occurs, there is also a tendency for provide an apparatus by which groups or batches of articles, such as flat cardboard boxes, may be automatically fed to, and carried through, a tying mechanism atpauniform, rapid, rate.

Another'object of the invention is to` pro-.

vide a feed apparatus for tying and similar machines by which the feedingy ofbatches of articlesto theptying machinemay be accurately timed to the rate of su l or roduction of the articles. Pp y 'p l vFurther objects lof the invention are,^to provide a simple and effective 'holding means for lcarrying Hat boxes in compact batches and to provide a means for feeding batches of flat boxes orfsimilar articles through a tying mechanism and timing the movement of said batches to hold them inty proper position for tying and for adjusting the position of said tying mechanism to said timing. n `With these and other objects in view, the invention comprises the apparatus described and set forth in the following specification and claims@l rlhe various features of the invention 'are illustratedin the accompanyingr drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of a feeding mechanism embodying a. preferred form of the invention, and portions of the delivery belt of a gluingmachine and of a tying' mechanism, Fig. 2 is an end view of the feeding machine shown `in Fig. 1, looking from the direction' of the gluing machine, portions of Athe mechanism being broken away to more clearly illustrate its construction,

`Fig. 3 is a plan viewofV the end of the feeding machine near the gluing machine,

Fig. 4 is a side viewk of the driving mechanismof the feeding machine, taken from the' opposite side of the machine,

Fig. 5 is a detail sectional view of a Atravelling chain conveyor .and track forming part of the feed. mechanism, i

Fig.'V 6 is a detail view of a portionv of the' holding means forthe batches of boxes, and',

Fig. 7 is a detail sectional view of a brake device for the batch or holder carrying mea-ns.

In the present invention, the yoperator needv only remove batches of the desired number of boxes from the delivery belt of a gluing machine and place them in a holding device or holder of the'feeding machine. Each batch of boxes is tightly` held in the holder and moved by a suitable conveyingv mechanism in a short, rapid, movement until it. passes and releases a trip mechanism of a tying machine positioned to be engaged by the passing batches.

The further mover` ment of the batch isthen arrested until the l position to receive a batch of boxes, conbe madevery rapidly and the machine run' to, or slightly greater than, that at whichA veyed into position to be tied and held in this position until tied, and then removed. Aszthemovements required ofthe operators of the machine are very simple they may at as rapid a speedV as the gluing machine and tying machine will permit. To insure the feeding andtying of the boxes as soon as they leave the gluing machine, the feeding machine is driven from a source common to the gluing machine or, preferably, it is driven-directly from the delivery belt `of the gluing machine and is run at a speed suiiicientto feedthe boxes at a rate equal they are supplied from the gluing machine.

Referring, more particularly, to the accompanying` drawings, a batch 10 of boxes to be bound-or tied into a bundle is removed f from a delivering conveyor 12 of a gluing machine and placed `in position between spaced Yupright arms 14 and 16 of a holder mounted on endless conveyor chains 18 and 20. Each chain is provided with apair of upright 'or outwardly .projecting arms 14 and f16 for each holder and the batches of boxes or other articles to be bound or tied are lirmly held in position between these arms. and` extendcrosswise between the 5 chains as shown in Figs. 2 and 3; The chains are supported inparallel positions on tracks 22 and 24 mounted on a supporting frame 25 to extend substantially ,horizontally between driving cog wheels 26 and 28 support ed on a driving shaft 30, and supporting wheels 32 supported on a shaft 34 at the other end of the frame 25. From the wheels 32 the chains return beneath idler wheels 36 to the drivingfwheels 26 and 28.

The ohains18 and 2O are driven at successive intervals to carry the holders from the position in which `they receive the batch 10 to the position, indicated Iin Fig. 1, of a preceding batch 38. In passing to this posi-y y tion the batch engages and displaces a string 40f suspended from ay needle 42, placed above the path of the holders, to a knotting and.

cutting device 44, placed between the tracks 22 and 24. As the batch passes over the.

knottingV device it depresses a trip or trigger 46, which projects `slightly above the level of the tracks, and,immediately upon reaching a4 position at which Ythe trip is released, the movement of the chains and holders is arrested and the batch is stopped in position tobe tied. AsA the trip `mechanism is released, the needle 42 is depressed by the tying mechanism until it reaches the knottin g device 44, drawingthe string 40 tightly about the batch and binding the batch into a Compact bundle. Any suitable tying or binding machine may be used for this purpose and, as the construction of these machines is known, the position of the machine relative to the tying machine is` merely indicated in the drawings. When the tying operation is completed, the chains and holders are moved to bring another batch of boxes into position to `be tied andthe tied bundle is carried to the positionof a pre-- ceding bundle 48,' in which position it may be removed from the machine. f

To enable the batches of articles to be readily inserted or placed in the holders and to be firmly and compactly held, the

upright arms are providedl with-movable,

parallel, holding bars 49 as shown in detail 1n Fig. 6, supported rearwardly `of the arms 16 byv means of bolts 50 and resiliently pressed away from the arms 16 by means ofv springs 51 inserted therebetween. To facilitate the'insertion of batches of boxes the upper end of the bar 49 is rounded forwardly. Thearms 14 and 16 may be supported on the chains 18 and 20 in any suitable manner, as for example, rin the form shown in the drawings, by riveting or bolting the arms individually at suitable inter,- vals in the length of the chain, to upwardly projecting Seats y52 of supporting links.

The batches or bundles are thus carried in a regular, uniform, sequence from the receiving position to the tying position and the rate of their passage may be controlled rby the driving of the shaft 30 fand the wheels 26 and 28. As the placing of the batches in the holders andy their removal from the opposite end of the machine re-` quire but very little time, the speed at which the machine may be 'run is limited only by the time required to operate the tying m'achine. The driving shaft is therefore driven at a. definite ratio to theoperation of the gluing machine, preferably, as shown in the drawings, by driving it from the delivery conveyor through a suitable transmission mechanism and the intermittent motionof the holders and chains is obtained in, this transmission mechanism.

To this end, the delivery conveyor 12 of the gluing machine is provided with a:-

sprocket Wheel 53 which is arranged to drive a sprocket 54 of the feeding machine through a chain 55. The wheel 54 is splined to a shaft 56 Which also-carries a clutch member 58 adapted to engage a clutch member 60 secured to a gear wheel 62 mounted loosely on the shaft 56. The gear wheel 62. is provided throughouta portion of its circum-` les ference with gear teeth 64 adapted to engage a spur gear 66, mounted on a stub shaft 67 extending from the sider of the frame 25, The remaining portion 65 of the wheel 62 is without teeth and free to rotate without engaging or driving the spur gear 66. The spur gear 66, in turn, engages and drives a second gear 68 rigidly mounted on the shaft 30, the shaft and' its sprocket wheels 26 and 28 and the chains 18 and 20 being driven from the wheel 62 through the spur gears 66 and 68. l n

The wheel 62 and the intervening spur gears 66 and 68 are so positioned that, as the last of the teeth 64 pass out of mesh with the spur gear 66, the chains and holders are brought into the position shown in Fig.'

` the toothed yportion of the wheel 62 appreaches and engages the spur gear 66, the movement ofthe chains and holders is resumed and the chains are driven to bring another batch of boxes into position to be tied. To insure the proper engagement of the spur gear 66, the wheel`62 is provided with a short radially extending projection 7() adapted to engage a longitudinally projecting pin 7 2 on the gear 66 and bring the teeth of the gears into mesh. The gear train and transmission mechanism between the gear 50 and the gear 68 are so arranged that the wheel 62 will be rotated and the holders advanced one position when the belt 12 has been advanced a .length holding sufficient boxes for one batch or bundle.` In the embodiment of the invention shown in the accompanying drawings, the ratio of rotation of the wheels 52 and 50 is twelve to nine, but this ratio may be changed to suit conditions.

To insure the prompt stopping of the chains and holders as the untoothed portion 65 of the gear 62 reaches the spur gear 66, the shaft 30 is provided with a brake having suiicient frictional resistance to stop the shaft as soon as the driving of the gear wheels 66 and 68 ceases. For this purpose, a reversely bent strip of metal 74 is mounted on the frame 25 by means of a screw or bolt 76, as shown in detail in Fig. 7, the reversely bent portion of the strip extending around and over the shaft 30. A strip of leather 78 or other suitable friction material is inserted between the strip 76 and the shaft 30 and the friction on the shaft may be ad justed by pressing the yreversely bent portion of the strip toward the straight portion of the strip by means of a screw 80 threaded in the straight portion of the strip and having its head engaging t-he opposite side of the reversed portion4 of the strip. A spring 82 is placed between the opposed sides of the-strip to press them apart as the screw 8() is loosened. f

When it is desired to stop the binding or tying of the boxes without stopping the gluing machine, the clutch member 58 is slid longitudinally on the shaft 56 until it is disengaged from the clutch member 60. To this end, the clutch member 58 is pro'- vided with an annular groove 84 rotating between forked arms 86 of a shifting lever 88 pivoted on a bracket 90 on the side of the frame 25. The groove is freely rotatable between the arms 86 but the sides .of the groove are engaged as the lever 88 1s tilted to either side to shift the clutch member. The lever is provided with a handle 92 Ibywhich it may be manually tilted.

The frame 25 may be of any suitable construction, preferably so arranged that the tying machine may be readily inserted into position and removed. The shafts SOand 34 are mounted in bearings 94 and 96 at opposite ends of the top portion of the frame and the tracks 20 and 22 are supported above the top of the fra-me in line with the upper surface of the wheels 26 and 32 by means of cross bars or brackets 98. The idlers 36 are journaled in bearings 100 supported in a vertically'slidable relation on brackets 102 attached to the top portion of the lframe 25. The vvertical position of the bearings may bel adjusted vby means of screws 104totighten or loosen the chains 18 and 20, The frame is also, in its preferred form, so constructed as to permit the tying machine to be readily inserted in position with the trip and knotting mechanism in proper position between the tracks v20 and 22 and to permit the position of the tying machine to be adjusted longitudinally of the tracks and conveyor chains to bring the trip mechanism into the proper relation to the stopping point. of the holders.

Through the above invention the batches or groups of boxes from the gluing machine are fed to the tying machine automatically in a rapid, uniform manner. The boxes are bound and held in compact position as soon as they comefrom the gluing machin-e, thereby eliminating any tendency for them to come apart. The gluing machine may also be run at a much higher speed and its outputcorrespondingly increased over that obtained when the boxes are fed to the tying machine by hand. It is understood however that the invention may be applied to other uses of a similar nature without departing from the broader features of theinvention. f f

" Having describedthevinventionl what We claim and desireto secure by Letters Patent is: Y

1. Apparatus of the type described which comprises, means for receiving and holding groups of articles in a compacted form suitable for binding` in packages, said means comprisinga pair of spaced uprights and a resiliently pressed upright therebetween, means for banding saidgroups in packages, and means for intermittentlymoving said packages in a continuous pathtocause said groups to pause in position for banding and to thereafter continuedin `an unchanged direction on their paths. l 1 z i,

2. Apparatus of the type-.described :which comprises, holders for holding articles in compact groups for tying intol packages, a chain conveyor `for carrying said holders into position for the tying of'said articles, supporting and driving sprockets for said chain conveyor, a driven geanin-clriving relationto said sprockets, and a driving gear having teeth on a Vportion of ,its circumference to mesh with said driven gear and being free of teethv on the reinainingportion of its circumference.

3. Apparatus of the type described which comprises, holders for holding articles in compact groups to be tied, chain conveyors for carrying said holders, tracks supporting said chain conveyors and arranged to permit the insertion of thevtrip mechanism of tying machine therebetween, means for driving said chains on said tracks and interrupting the driving of said chains at'uniV form intervals to cause said groups topause in position for tying.

4. Apparatus of the typeldescribed which comprises, holders for holding articles to be tied, `conveyor means' for conveying said holders through a position forvtying said. I.. Y articles, a transmission gear for driving said conveyor means, a driving gear for said ygear train having teeth'on onlya portion of its periphery, `a finger on said 1 driving gear, and a pin on the transmission gear adapted to be engaged-by said iingerwhen the teeth of said driving gear approach al position to mesh with the teeth of said driven gear;

5. Apparatus of th-eltype described Which i comprises, holders for holding articles to be bound, chain conveyors for carrying said holders through a position for tying said articles, cog- Wheels and supporting and driving shafts vfor said chain conveyors, means for driving said shafts, means forinterrupting the driving of said shafts at regular intervals, and a brake devicefor stopping the,

rotation of said shafts as soon means is interrupted. V y

6. Apparatus of the typedescribed which comprises, an endless conveyor chain, a pair of out jardly extending'arms mounted on as the driving successive links of said chain, and a bar tures.`

VILLIAM E. TAYLOR. ZIGMUND HOFFMAN.` 

